


find the one that excites you

by xxprincessxx



Category: High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst, F/M, Fluff, Strangers to Lovers, not really strangers lol
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-15
Updated: 2020-06-15
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:20:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 22,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24725155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xxprincessxx/pseuds/xxprincessxx
Summary: A sly smirk finds its way onto the boy’s face as he looks up at the brunette perched on the counter. He takes the nearly empty cup out of her hands pulling her off of the counter. “What are you doing?” Nini alarmed by the boy’s actions.“I don’t have friends here tonight, and neither do you. And, I want to dance, so come on.” He begins to pull on her hand towards the living room where the music was much louder...OR Ricky and Nini know each other through mutual friends but don't really talk, and after a party they realize they have a lot more in common than they thought
Relationships: Ricky Bowen/Nini Salazar-Roberts
Comments: 13
Kudos: 134





	find the one that excites you

**Author's Note:**

> hi everyone! i'm really excited for this one, i've been working on it for a little bit now and have been looking forward to sharing it. i hope you all enjoyed it as much as i did!
> 
> xx

It was incredibly rare to see Nini at a party, never really been one to be surrounded by crowds of people without her friends, and she isn’t really sure why she decided to go to Nate’s party that night. All her friends were talking about it and complaining how they couldn’t go, either being out of town that night or were working late.

Cautiously Nini walks around the house watching people zoom by her, nearly everyone has a red solo cup in hand, and if they weren’t they were downing a shot. It was incredibly late, well, late for Nini. It was 11PM and usually on a Friday night she would typically be seen at home cuddled up in front of her TV watching whatever was her current binge show on Netflix.

The brunette wanders into the kitchen curiously, looking around at the throngs of people that were dancing in the living room. She grabs a cup filling it up from the keg that was sitting in one of the corners in the kitchen. As Nini leaned against the counter, watching everyone just let all their worries go as they chatted and danced with their friends, or with people they knew they wanted to take home that night.

Sipping her drink with a grimace as the liquid hits her tongue, the brunette always hated the taste of beer. It wasn’t the most pleasant of tastes to say the least, she’d much rather be at home sipping on a cold glass of wine.

Looking out to the throngs of people she wonders how they made it look so easy to just let all the stresses and worries of college and their future just slip their mind, like it was nothing. All Nini could think about was her future, was she going to be able to get into med school? Was she even good enough to make it to residency? Was she going to make it as a doctor? Was she even going to be a good doctor? Who fucking knew. She sure doesn’t.

It was the biggest reason Nini came to these parties. Normally she would be trailing behind her friends, watching as Gina just danced so freely with her boyfriend, or how Kourtney would just drink until she felt so numb that Nini ended up taking care of her roommate the following morning. Or how Seb and Carlos would make out on the couch with no care that they are in public for everyone to see. Nini wanted to feel that. She wanted to feel numb, carefree, and dance like nobody’s watching. But no matter how hard she tried, she never could. There was always something holding her back.

She hops onto the counter, feeling the cool countertop underneath the warmth of her thighs that were exposed by her black shorts. There weren’t that many people in the kitchen, she only recognized maybe one or two from class, but didn’t know their names.

At that moment, she really wished she had one of her friends to talk to. She couldn’t help but think that she probably looked like a complete loser. Sitting on the counter as she cradled a cup of beer to her chest as she watched others have the time of their lives, that screamed extreme loser energy right there.

It would be so easy for her to just down her cup and go home. She debated it for quite some time, this wasn’t her scene, the complete opposite if she was being honest. But she could also hear her friends voices’ in the back of her mind.

_‘Let go Nini’_

_‘You need to get out there, girl’_

_‘Stop thinking about school’_

_‘You will be a doctor Nins, just enjoy college while it lasts’_

_‘You should start dating, I wanna go on double dates with you’_

She hated it. She hated that’s what they thought of her. Like she didn’t know how to have fun, like she didn’t know what fun even is, like she wasn’t like them and couldn’t relate. But what she hated the most was that they were right.

Of course, they were right. How could they not be?

All Nini ever did was work and study, but working towards being a doctor doesn’t leave exactly a lot of time for herself to just have fun. Ever since she was a kid, she always had to work extra hard. The pressures from her moms constantly wanting her to be at the top of her class, even when she was eight and that kind of thing didn’t fucking exist. So that’s all she’s ever known, working to do better, working to be better, working to be the best.

Her moms never pushed her to be a doctor. That was the first decision she had made all on her own in regard to her future. And she was so fucking proud of herself when she did it, but now all that hung in the balance was her making it as a doctor. All she ever wanted was to make her moms proud, and she knew that when she finally gets that Dr. in front of her name she’s made it.

And she hated that she compared herself to just about anyone she could. She just wanted to be like a regular 21-year old and let go. Just like everyone at this party, just like her friends, just like every college student.

“Nini, hey!” The brunette’s thoughts were interrupted by a voice calling out her name. Her head snaps in the direction of the voice, seeing Ricky Bowen approaching her with a bright smile. EJ’s best friend who she’s only met a couple of times, she was honestly surprised he approached her in the first place.

She manages to pull a smile, despite her rather upsetting thoughts from a few moments ago, “Hi Ricky, how are you?” She asks.

The curly-haired boy eyes her carefully for a second, but decides against prying, “I’m pretty good. How are you? Where are your friends?” He responds, casually leaning against the counter next to her eyeing the cup in her hand.

The brunette shrugs, her mouth turning down in a frown for a second, “I’m okay. Kourt has work, and Seb and Carlos went to that dance convention with EJ and Gi so it’s just me tonight.” She lifts her shoulders a little uncomfortable, “Sorry to disappoint.” Letting an embarrassed chuckle to escape her mouth.

“You could never disappoint.” He knocks his hand into her knee jokingly.

Nini couldn’t help but feel a blush begin to rise into her cheeks, glancing away for a moment. Thank god she was drinking having been blessed with the fact that she had the gene of the asian glow. Normally she complained about it, but just this once it was being used for her benefit.

As she runs a hand through her loose curls, she turns her head to look back at the boy as he starts speaking again. She wonders how he did it. The curly-haired boy was so comfortable talking to people that were basically strangers. When they had first met he just seemed so at ease starting up a conversation with her, despite her obvious hesitancy.

“Anyways, what’re you doing here? By yourself, I mean.” He questions, as he glances back down to her cup again.

The brunette shrugs not quite sure how to answer that herself.

A sly smirk finds its way onto the boy’s face as he looks up at the brunette perched on the counter. He takes the nearly empty cup out of her hands pulling her off of the counter. “What are you doing?” Nini alarmed by the boy’s actions.

Ricky bites his lip with a bright smile, Nini couldn’t help but feel her heartbeat quicken at the sight. The boy has always been on the more attractive side, but Nini thought it was just one of those crushes you get. Like the one she had on her barista last week or the boy she saw on the train or the volunteer that helped her out at the animal shelter. Now she was beginning to rethink that.

“Well doctor,” Ricky laughs when she scrunches her eyebrows at the nickname, “I don’t have friends here tonight, and neither do you. And, I want to dance, so come on.” He begins to pull on her hand towards the living room where the music was much louder.

As they walked into the living room, Nini couldn’t help but note the instant change in temperature due to the amount of dancing, sweaty bodies throughout the room. Ricky pulls her towards an empty spot and takes a hold of her other hand moving her limp arms around in beat to the music, it took Nini a few minutes to relax but eventually she did.

The brunette laughs at the weird faces he was making trying to get her to relax into the music and just enjoy the moment. Maybe it was the way he smiled, or the way he got her to move her body in tune to the blaring music, but all her worries and insecurities from earlier that evening just seemed to drift away.

They continued to dance to the music well into the night, the pair talking over the music and Nini laughed at every single joke the boy would make. Ricky would smile down at the brunette as he watched her sing along to the songs with her entire chest. The last thing on Nini’s mind was school or work or what she would’ve been doing on a typical Friday night her friends weren’t free to hangout.

Pulling her phone out of her pocket for the first time since they had left the kitchen and Nini’s eyes nearly pop out of her head. It was half past two, and there were three missed calls from Kourtney and a handful or text messages from her friends asking her where she had gone to. The brunette assumed that Kourtney had sent out an SOS to their friends, claiming she had gone missing or something.

Ricky, who was watching Nini scroll through her phone, moves his hand from where it rested on her hip to the small of her back leaning in closer to her ear so she could hear him better. “Do you want me to drive you home?” He breathes out, both of them a little breathless from dancing the night away.

The feeling of his breath against her ear sends shivers down her spine. He probably saw the number of messages that flooded her screen and just put two and two together. Nini gulps, her senses being sent into overdrive. The only thing she could focus on was the hand on her back and the way his breath fanned over her face as he locked eyes with her in question. She sends him a warm smile nodding in response, having taken an Uber to the party with the intention of drinking, which only ended up being barely a cup of beer.

He slips his hand off her back, despite it being incredibly hot in the room from the amount of people that was probably over the capacity that should be allowed, she missed the warmth of his touch. But it didn’t last long, as he slid his hand into hers dragging her towards the exit.

As they exit the house, Nini shivers as the cool air hits her hot skin. Ricky laughs feeling her body shake for a second continuing to pull her towards his car. As like any gentleman would, Ricky pulls the car door open for her letting her slide in and buckle up before shutting it and making his way to the driver’s side.

After buckling up, he pulls his phone out of his pocket unlocking it with ease and handing it to her to which she takes carefully, shooting him a questioning look wondering why he was handing it to her. “I don’t know where you live.” He chuckles, “Put in your address and let google maps do the rest.” He jokes.

The brunette nods in understanding, navigating her way through his phone to find the app he had mentioned, which deemed more difficult than usual. It was nestled in a folder labelled ‘Important Enough.’ She couldn’t help but chuckle at the name, the boy having also put in Facebook, his contacts, photos, WhatsApp Messenger and Twitter. The last one she thought was a little odd for a college student, but didn’t question him.

As she types in her address, Ricky starts up the engine. “Oh,” he utters, catching her attention once more, “Add your phone number too.” He winks.

The request caused Nini’s cheeks to burn up again, despite the cool air blasting throughout his car. She shakes her head chuckling, trying to stop the burning that was rising in her cheeks. She does as he says and inputs her name before starting up google maps.

After hitting start on the directions, she places it on the magnetic phone holder that sits right above the radio that was already playing some old Bruno Mars song from his Spotify playlist. She turns in her seat as Ricky pulls out into the street making their way back to her apartment.

“Have you always been such a charmer?” She teases.

Ricky laughs at her peculiar question, but answers nonetheless. “Only for the pretty ones.” He glances in her direction taking his eyes off the road, and smiles the 1000-watt smile he has been sending her all night.

She throws her head back in laughter, “Shut up.”

“What?” He laughs, bringing his attention back to the nearly empty road in front of him. Only a few cars lingered the streets, as they were still in the suburban area. “You’re really pretty, Doctor.” He pauses for a second in thought.

“Doctor pretty.” He tests, “Doctor gorgeous. Doctor beautiful.” He continues, but shakes his head, “Doctor pretty.” He repeats to himself, as if affirming that’s what he wanted to start calling her.

Nini looks out the window a little embarrassed by the words that were spewing from his mouth, but turns to look at him as they stop at a red light. “You know, I’m not a doctor.” She decides to ignore the second half of the nickname.

The boy leans in closer to her for a second, “Not yet,” he taps her nose, “You will be. One day. And a damn good one at that.” Leaning back into his seat, noticing the lights were about to turn green once more.

The girl shakes her head chuckling, “You don’t know that.”

“Yeah, I do.” He nods moving his foot off the brake and hitting the acceleration once more, taking them down the street, “Gina says you’re always studying or doing some kind of work every time she comes over, that means you’re fucking dedicated and passionate about what you do. And you have the calm, cool and collected personality that everyone wants in a doctor.”

“Keeping tabs on me now, are we Bowen?” She raises an eyebrow and crosses her arms over her chest, teasing the boy once more.

Ricky couldn’t help but roll his eyes, flicking up the indicator to go right as he made the last turn into her apartment complex. He pulls up in front of her apartment building throwing the car into park, turning his body to face the brunette again.

“Do you know how to take a compliment?” He asks.

The young woman bites her lip shaking her head, “Not really, no.”

“Well, get used to it.” He pokes her shoulder, “You’ll be getting them a lot more from me.”

Nini eyes him carefully, trying to figure out his true motive of why he was doing what he was doing. Deciding to ignore it for now, she opts for teasing him a little longer, “What makes you think I want to be friends?” She shoots an accusatory look at the boy.

He shakes his head, knowing the girl was just trying to play it the hard way.

The curly-headed boy lifts a hand, “One,” sticking out his index finger as he starts pointing out a number of reasons as he answers her question. “You spent the whole night dancing, laughing and joking with me.” The first reason caused Nini to roll her eyes at the boy, knowing there was no point in fighting him on that point.

“Two,” he smirks, raising another finger, “You would’ve gone home right after you finished that cup of beer, but instead you hung out with me until what you would call the wild hours of the night.” He laughs, as her jaw drops in offense.

He was right, Nini thought. But he didn’t have to know that.

Before she could protest, he lifted another finger, “And three, you gave me your number and let me drive you home.”

As he notices a little scrunch in her nose, so small that if he blinked he would’ve missed it. He throws his hands up mocking as if he had mic dropped with the brightest grin on his face. “Am I right, or am I right?” He chides.

The young woman rolls her eyes chuckling at his comment and bright smile indicating how proud he was of himself for getting each point right. She pushes her hand into his head, nudging his head to the side as he continues to laugh.

“You’re a dumbass.” She laughs.

“A dumbass that’s in pre-med.” He points out, tapping his temple three times, “Not completely dumb up here.”

The brunette was taken aback but the little fact that she was completely unaware of. After having met a few months ago when EJ and Gina had called for a friend group collision, Nini was never made aware of the fact that she wasn’t the only one in pre-med.

She blinks as she absorbs the new information, she turns to look at the boy next to her who had an impish grin graced on his face. “What? Why didn’t you tell me?” She pokes his stomach a few times as he tries to bat her hands away.

“You never asked!” He exclaims.

“Well then.” She huffs, unsure what to say, “Uh, thanks for tonight. I had a lot of fun.” She smiles, moving to open up her door getting ready to head into her apartment.

Before she could get out of the car, Ricky pokes her shoulder grabbing her attention once more, “Expect a text from me later, Dr. Pretty.” He bites his lip, despite how dim the lighting was Nini couldn’t help but think how attractive he looked.

Nini chuckles shaking her head at the nickname, “Looking forward to it,” she pauses, locking eyes with the boy, “Dr. Dumbass.” She winks climbing out of the car as fast as she could, shutting the door swiftly.

“Not a doctor!” She hears a shout from behind her.

She turns around quickly to see Ricky had rolled down the window, he had the same 1000-watt smile on his face and his head slightly tilted to the left, reminding the girl of a happy puppy. She lets out a loud laugh, “Shut up! I’m manifesting!” She shouts back.

Ricky’s laugh echoes through the night, shaking his head at the brunette, “Night, Nins.”

“Good night, Ricky.” She waves, finally turning to head into her apartment.

\--

“Where the fuck were you last night?” Kourtney nearly shouts the second the brunette emerges from her room, a lot later than she normally would on a regular Saturday morning.

Nini rolls her eyes at her friend’s question, she immediately moves around the girl making her way into the kitchen to fix herself a cup of coffee desperately needing it after a late night. Ever since freshman year, she had always made it a point that every morning must start with a sip of coffee or else she might just snap at whoever would try to speak to her. She wasn’t exactly sure why, but the bitter taste of black coffee always brought her back to reality and no longer in her dream world.

She watches as the dark liquid starts to fill up her mug from their Keurig, the one her moms had given to them as a housewarming gift earlier that year. Kourtney waits impatiently, leaning against the doorframe of their kitchen.

As the last few drops of her hot beverage begins to drip into her cup, she finally holds it in her hands looking down at the cup lovingly, like it was the only thing that mattered in the world, and she takes a careful sip trying her best not to burn her tongue.

The young brunette lets out a deep sigh, closing her eyes letting the hot liquid trickle down her throat. Embracing the warmth and the energy she needed to flow through her body. She turns around leaning against the counter as she looks to her roommate whose arms were crossed over her chest awaiting an answer.

Once locking eyes with the girl, she instantly moves her gaze back down to the dark liquid swimming in her favourite mug. It was pale pink, with the words ‘Coffee saves lives. Mostly yours.’ Gina had given it to her last year as a gag gift, thinking it was hilarious since Nini was in pre-med and couldn’t survive a day without a sip of coffee. She sighs tiredly, running a hand through her knotted hair.

Setting down her mug on the counter, “I, uh, I went to Nate’s party last night.” She admits timidly, just waiting for whatever response she knew she wasn’t ready for.

“What the fuck? Really? Why? How was it? What did you do? What time did you get home?” The girl spews questions out one after the other, not giving her enough time to answer. “Why the fuck did you get home so late?”

Nini laughs, rather dryly, grabbing her mug once more taking a sip as she stalls the answer to her roommate’s question. “Around three, I think?” She mumbles, trying her best to recall what the time had said when she had finally drug her feet into their apartment.

“Three?!” Kourtney yells, her voice echoed throughout the empty apartment.

The brunette presses her lips together nodding, continuing to drink the hot beverage no longer caring how hot it was. The burning sensation probably was much better than whatever was going to come about from this conversation.

“Fuck Nins. We don’t even stay out that late when we party.” She eyes her carefully, moving further into the kitchen, sitting down at the kitchen table. “What happened last night? Oh my god, did you finally get some?!” She asks excitedly.

The question took Nini by surprise, nearly choking on her coffee. She swallows the hot drink trying to compose herself once more, her mind drifting to the man she spent all night with. However, not in the way her best friend was insinuating.

Nini lets out a forced laugh, “Who do you think I am?” She glares at the seated girl, she approaches the table sitting across from her roommate.

“Well, I don’t know Nini. You went to a party without us and you got home at 3AM, what am I supposed to think?” Kourtney argues, trying to figure out what the hell happened in the last few hours since she had seen her roommate.

In all honesty, Nini wasn’t surprised by her outburst. When Kourtney had left for work yesterday, she had told her she was just going to spend the night reviewing for a test she had coming up. Maybe, watching a few episodes of Gilmore Girls, her latest Netflix binge show.

Despite expecting her reaction, Nini wasn’t exactly thrilled. She knew that her friends had thought of her as this anti-fun, studious and dedicated girl. And, so what if she preferred to hit the books than spend the night out on the town? She should be allowed to do things she wanted to do.

A ding comes from her phone, interrupting her thoughts and Kourtney and hers conversation, or was it an interrogation? Nini flips her phone over, having placed it face down on the table when she sat down. It was an unknown number.

_+1 (283)-758- 0823: Good morning dr. pretty, I was hoping we could hang out today. Maybe throw in a little studying while we’re at it, what do you say?_

The brunette chuckles at the text, the nickname instantly being the obvious indicator on who it was. The boy not even bothering to introduce himself, but he probably thought it wasn’t necessary. She quickly drafts a text accepting his invitation.

_Nini: You got it dr. dumbass. Come by my place in an hour, there’s a coffee shop I like to go to a few minutes from me. We can go there._

After saving his number in her phone, his contact obviously being ‘Dr. Dumbass,’ She glances back up to her roommate who was peering over, trying her best to get a look at the messages on her phone.

“Excuse me, nosy pants.” She puts her phone to her chest, preventing her from reading anything further.

“Was that the guy you spent the night with? You got real giddy when you were reading that message.” She prods the brunette.

Nini’s face instantly flushes in embarrassment, “If you must know, I didn’t sleep with anyone. And, yes, I hung out with him last night. And, no, we didn’t do anything but talk and dance.” She takes another gulp of her coffee, starting to think that suggesting going to the coffee shop wasn’t the best idea but she figures no one could ever have too much coffee. “Now, if you’ll excuse me. I have a study group to get to.” She half lies, getting out of her seat to start getting ready.

The brunette stood in front of her closet as she thought about what to wear for, what can she call this? A coffee date? A study date? A study hangout? He did say hangout, so definitely not a date. But hangout sounds so weird, it was the best way to put it though despite how weird it sounded.

Finally deciding on a pair of her favourite skinny jeans and a white, polka-dotted crop top, she quickly pulls on her white converse as she reads Ricky’s text that he was leaving and should be there in ten minutes.

Looking in the mirror, she debates for a second wondering if she should throw on at least a little bit of makeup. She stares down at her vanity where her makeup was scattered from the night before when she was throwing whatever she could on for the party. She settles on a little concealer, mascara and just a small line of eyeliner, flicking out at the ends.

Throwing a bunch of stuff into her backpack, not really sure if he was completely serious about studying while they hung out but wanted to be safer than sorry. She runs through the apartment, as she grabs her textbook that she had left out in the living room yesterday.

“Why do you look like you’re going on a date instead of a study group?” Kourtney questions, flipping through the Netflix options that were displayed on the TV.

The brunette shrugs, “I just felt like looking cute today.”

Kourtney nods, unsure of whether to believe the girl, “Well, you have accomplished that much.”

Nini smiles brightly, looking down at her phone as it dings signaling he was waiting for her downstairs. “I gotta go, my ride’s here. I’ll see you later, not really sure what time I’ll be back. Bye Kourt!” She rushes to say as she makes her way to the door.

“Bye…?” Kourtney utters confused about her roommate’s behaviour in the last 24 hours.

As Nini makes her way out of the apartment complex, she is instantly faced with Ricky casually leaning against his car waiting for her. The brunette shakes her head as she sends him a bright smile, as she approaches him.

“Hey Dr. Pretty.” He returns her smile pushing himself off the vehicle, opening his arms wide inviting the girl to wrap herself around him.

She tries to calm her quickening heartbeat, as she wraps her arms around his torso for a second, maybe ten if anyone was really counting. Ricky lets his arms fall back to his side, pulling the passenger door open letting her climb in.

They chatted quietly as they drove over to the coffee shop, it was a short and quick ride. Mostly talking about how their night had gone after parting ways, both completely passing out the second they had gotten home.

As they head in and order their drinks, Ricky insists on paying for her order to which she rolls her eyes to. After a quick little banter, she complies, ordering a large black coffee and a blueberry muffin, not having had breakfast yet.

Weirdly enough, Ricky orders a black coffee, just like her. The brunette hasn’t met anyone that’s been able to drink black coffee, always needing cream and sugar added to their drinks. A disgrace, the pair agreed on.

The pair take a seat in a booth a little further back in the quaint café. Nini studies Ricky’s features carefully, as he busies himself with putting his wallet back into his backpack. Her eyes focus on his side profile, thinking it looked incredibly attractive, from his sharp jaw to his slanted nose and his hazel eyes. As her eyes moved up to his messy curls, she couldn’t help but stare at the one loose curl that hung over his forehead. It matched Ricky’s personality, something that looked out of place but it was perfect and it just worked.

The brunette couldn’t stop thinking about the fact that he was also majoring in pre-med, right alongside her. She never would’ve thought a care-free, hilarious and attractive man would be pursuing such a heavy field like medicine. He has visited the hospital for his skating injuries more times than he could count, something that she learned about the young man the other night. He just seemed more of the type of person to be seen at the hospital in need of an injury treatment, not because he wanted to treat others injuries.

“What?” Ricky laughs, noticing the way the brunette was observing him with a rather soft, yet quizzical look on her face.

She ducks her head in embarrassment for a moment, but lifts her head back up, “Nothing. You just looked really attractive.” She lets slips from her mouth, instantly realizing what she had said she tries to cover it up, “Maybe it was the lighting, or something, I don’t know. Okay! Your turn to talk because I’m just going to keep embarrassing myself here.”

A laugh escapes his mouth, “Wow, don’t sound so surprised.” He leans forward propping his elbows on the table, cradling his head in his hands, “Maybe I can be your McDreamy.” He winks.

The brunette who was now cradling the hot beverage in her hands, taking a slow and languid sip from it, scrunches her nose in mock disgust, “Ew. Never, and I mean ever, say that again.”

“You’re the one that called me devilishly handsome.” He jokes.

Nini gasps, smacking his arm in protest while setting her drink back down on the table, “I did not! You’re putting words in my mouth!”

Ricky bursts into a fit of laughter, taking a hold of the girl’s hand, “It’s okay, at least we’d make a hot couple. You with all your beauty, and me with my handsome good looks.” He smirks.

That statement took Nini by surprise, her cheeks felt like they were literally on fire not quite sure where to look, what to do or what to say. The brunette opts for rolling her eyes, knocking their enclosed hands against his other arm, slipping her hand out of his, missing the way his hand felt in hers.

“A joker and a charmer? Who would’ve thought this dumbass would be in pre-med?” She teases, moving to pull out a few things she needed to start studying.

“Oh, you actually want to study?” He raises an eyebrow in question, bringing his coffee to his lips.

The woman eyes in weirdly, her gaze moves to the backpack he had brought and back to his eyes. “You were the one that suggested it!” She argues.

After drinking a large amount, Nini couldn’t help but think that must’ve burned the roof of his mouth but decided not to question it, Ricky burst into laughter once more, “I was just trying to lure Dr. Pretty out of her studying cave.” He nudges her foot, silently telling her that he was teasing her, “It’s fine. We do have a test on Friday.”

“We have class together?” She questions, flipping the pages of her textbook, moving it so they could both be able to read it, since apparently, they were studying for the same test.

He nods, “Yeah, I have the same schedule Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays with you.” He mentions, as if it was common knowledge.

“Why did you never say anything? How haven’t I ever noticed? What the fuck?” She mutters the last little bit to herself, a little appalled with herself for nor even noticing the man being in her classes for half of that semester. Who knew how many classes they’ve been taking together since freshman year?

All Ricky could do was shrug, pulling out a pen from his bag as he began to write the date at the top of his page. He’s left-handed, she notes. All the time, whether she’s watching a movie or show, or even at a store or library, she always catches whenever someone’s left-handed. It’s a rather weird habit she knows, but it has always been something she’s noticed.

After taking a rather large sip of his coffee that he had forgotten about due to his bantering with the young brunette, he taps his page a few times wondering what to note his gaze locks with Nini’s once more, “Well, your nose is always stuck in a book when I come to class. Usually it’s a textbook, but I’ve seen you read a few of those teen rom-com books.” He pokes, teasing her for her book choices.

“Hey!” She throws a sugar packet at him in protest, “Romantic comedies are my guilty pleasure.” Nini admits, to the curly-haired boy, focusing back on her notebook in front of her taking out her yellow highlighter dragging it over a few words.

Rick chuckles as he places the sugar packet back in the tray she stole it from, knowing neither of them were going to use it for their coffee. The pair continued to joke around while they took down a few notes and exchanged their lecture notes, maybe the other catching something that they hadn’t.

It was a successful study hangout, it’s what Nini decided to call it so she was just rolling with it. Their coffees were finished hours ago, and Nini had shared the muffin with the boy. She insisted, claiming he had paid for it so technically it’s also his. He had only taken a bite or two just to satisfy the brunette.

When Ricky pulls up in front of her apartment complex for the third time in the last 24 hours, he throws the car into park watching as the brunette starts to unbuckle herself and ensure she had everything before heading in. She turned to face the boy when she was just about ready to leave his car.

“Well, Dr. Dumbass, I should get in before Kourtney kills me for being out all of last night and all of today.” She jokes, with a slight serious tone in her voice.

Ricky gently takes a hold of her hand, “Dr. Pretty, it was a pleasure. And, I would like to request your presence at my apartment tomorrow evening.” He locks his eyes with the girl. “No notebooks, textbooks, laptops. We’re having a study free night.”

The brunette, a little confused but agrees nonetheless, finding that the last two days she has spent with the boy, have been the most relaxing yet he made it fun. Something about Ricky’s presence made life seem less stressful. Maybe it was because he was in pre-med like her, but knew how to relax and it was slowly beginning to rub off on her.

With a bright grin makes its way onto his face. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Dr. Pretty.” He gently presses a small kiss to her knuckles, his words ghosting over her skin causing shivers to run up Nini’s spine.

Once he drops her hand, she pushes the door open climbing out of the car. The girl’s face was bright red as she mumbles a goodbye, quietly telling him she’ll see him tomorrow. Nini does her best not to turn around as she walks towards the apartment building, knowing that if she did Ricky would simply be staring right back at her.

She was embarrassed and yet, extremely happy. Ricky was definitely a positive addition into her life, and she won’t admit it yet, but she’s excited to see where things between them go from here.

\--

Ricky’s apartment door swung wide open after three sharp knocks from the girl. The curly-haired boy was on the other side with an amused smirk on his face.

“You know,” he starts, leaning against the door casually, “Even your knocking is precise.”

The girl rolls her eyes, as Ricky opens the door wider inviting her into the apartment. She kicks off her shoes, before she follows him further into the apartment that she’s only visited once to drop something off for Gina.

She’s never been inside the apartment, only ever saw what you could see from their front door. She looks around the apartment curiously, she knew that along with EJ, Ricky had one other roommate. She’s never met him, but from what she’s heard from Gina and Ricky, he was just a ball of chaos but one of the kindest people you will ever meet.

It was quite tidy for an apartment of three college boys. Everything was stored away neatly, nothing on their tables or floor lingered. It was as if everything they owned had a specific place where it belonged. There was a tall bookcase filled up high with books and labelled baskets. She couldn’t help but chuckle at that little fact, it seems so unlike boys to keep everything neat and organized. She knew how rowdy teenage boys were, growing up with her cousins all three of which were older than her. So, she grew accustomed to the idea that the last thing on a boy’s mind was keeping things in order.

Carefully she waltzes across the living room, not listening to a word that Ricky was saying as she admired the art on their walls. She points to a rather vibrant painting, it was of the New York Cityscape, a little abstract given the colours but incredibly realistic and beautiful.

Pointing at the painting that hung above one of the couches, “This is breathtaking, I’ve never seen anything like it.” She comments, enraptured by its beauty.

Ricky chuckles walking to stand next to her, the brunette not realizing she had completely ignored the question he was posing. “Big Red is majoring in film, and he likes to paint on his off time. He’s an incredible artist, has been since we were kids.” Ricky informs the brunette.

“He really is. I’d love to get my hands on one of these one day.” She jokes, knocking her hip into his.

“You can commission one, if you want that is.” Ricky glances down at the brunette, “He loves to paint, so he wouldn’t mind one bit.”

The brunette nods considering the offer, “I guess it makes sense.”

A little confused on what she had meant, she decided to continue once she saw the perplexed face he was pulling. “Artists. A lot of them are chaotic, and are all over the place. You and Gi talk about how he’s literally a ball of chaos and incredibly clumsy.” She starts, moving to sit down on the couch underneath the painting, her eyes still roaming around the room taking in every inch of the apartment, “And, given what I know about you, I’d say this organizing system was all you. Printed your own labels and everything.”

The other day, Nini noticed the way Ricky would highlight and jot down his notes. It was always in a meticulous fashion, just like her. He had four highlighters and three pens, each of them were used for a different purpose. Ricky didn’t have to tell her, Nini was exactly the same. She used a yellow highlighter for important notes, a pink one for definitions, an orange one for bits she didn’t quite understand. They had their own kind of system, one that took years for them to develop and perfect.

At the mention of the bookcase, Ricky’s cheeks start to take on a pink tint, a little embarrassed that she had noticed it. But the boy shouldn’t be surprised, she was observant. Maybe too observant, but he wasn’t complaining.

He moves to sit down next to her, pulling the blanket off the armrest resting over their laps. “Stop trying to embarrass me.” He murmurs, wrapping his arms around the brunette leaning all his weight on her side.

“Ricky!” She whines.

The boy laughs into her shoulder getting off of her, “So,” he starts, grabbing a few controllers out of the basket that sat in the middle of the coffee table, “You’re the rom-com expert, you choose the movie.” He hands over the controllers as he moves to grab a few snacks from the kitchen.

Scrolling through the options that Netflix provided, the brunette having watched them countless times. As her eyes flick over the titles, Nini shouts out, “Are you sure you want to watch a rom-com? I don’t mind watching something you want.”

“Yes, now just pick something,” Ricky shuffles back into the room, two bottles of soda in one hand with a bowl of popcorn in the other.

The brunette pouts at the man, who settles down next to her pulling the blanket back on his lap, placing the bowl on top settling it between them. “For someone that barely knows me, you’ve gotten real comfortable with your teasing.”

The curly-haired boy throws his head back in laughter, wrapping an arm around her shoulder pulling her neck closer to him, “It’s not just the teasing, babe.” He flirts.

Nini smacks him in the stomach with the controllers, feeling her cheeks begin to burn for the umpteenth time that weekend. This whole banter, flirting, or whatever they were doing, was completely new for Nini. She was never the type to flirt or tease a guy but it was fun with Ricky and she felt butterflies swarm her stomach each time they did joke around.

It came as a surprise to Nini, how much she liked being around him and talking to the boy. He was different. Completely different than the other boys that have hit on her at parties, or ones that she’s tried dating, meeting through class or even on dating sites, but none of them gave her that gooey feeling inside her.

Busying herself by flicking through the movie options, she ends up choosing _To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before_ , one of her favourites. Fake dating has got to be one of her favourite tropes, she just found it hilarious every time. She had read the trilogy a few weeks before the movie had premiered, she wasn’t even aware it was coming out until it popped up on Netflix one day when she was scrolling through.

Nini shuffles as she relaxes into his side, his arm still wrapped around her shoulder. The brunette wonders if she should bring up the fact that this seemed very date-like. From the teasing to the rom-com playing to the position. She wanted to question it, but was scared that if she brought it up he would instantly get uncomfortable and awkward and she didn’t want that. So, she decided against it, embracing it for as long as she could.

As the movie played, Nini would point things out, such as how different their meeting was in the book or how she loved the main actors, even pointing out the author’s little cameo during the homecoming flashback scene. Each time she spoke she didn’t divert her gaze away from the screen, which amused Ricky because he was the complete opposite. He would constantly turn in her direction every time she mentioned something but he was only ever met with her side profile to which he couldn’t help but admire.

When Nini starts talking about a Halloween scene that they had to take out for Marvel copyright purposes, Ricky couldn’t help but chuckle leaning his head knocking into hers jokingly. The brunette turns to look up at the boy confused as to why he was laughing, it wasn’t a funny fact that she had spouted.

“I never pegged you to be a movie talker.” He laughs, moving the nearly empty bowl of popcorn out of his lap.

The brunette’s jaw drops in shock. She was well aware of how much she loved to talk during shows and movies, even if she was watching on her own she simply couldn’t help it. Her friends have told her countless times to shut up during movie nights because of how annoying it can be.

Unsure of how to respond, all she does is she shrugs and teases, “You don’t know a lot about me, Bowen.” She elbows his side lightly, in a joking manner.

Ricky’s exterior doesn’t falter as he looks down locking eyes with the brunette, “I want to.” He tells her seriously.

The answer completely throws Nini for a loop, a blush rising to her cheeks rapidly. No one has ever said that to her, and when he said things like that it felt like he was throwing more fuel into the fire trying to get the girl to fall for him faster than she should. He might realize it, he might not. But it sure as hell was working.

“You two look comfy.” A feminine voice breaks them out of their staring contest, the pairs heads snapping the direction of the group that were kicking off their shoes as they entered the apartment.

The brunette filled with embarrassment seeing EJ, Gina, Carlos and Seb looking over at the pair questioningly. She groans, hunching over to drop her head into her lap, she feels Ricky’s hand that was previously around her shoulder move to the middle of her back stroking his thumb along the bumps in her spine comfortingly. It was as if he understood what was running through the brunette’s mind.

It wasn’t that she was embarrassed by her hanging out with Ricky, she was more apprehensive seeing as that none of their friends were aware of the recent development between them. Nini still hasn't found a way to tell Kourtney who she’s been hanging around with all weekend. When she was leaving their apartment earlier that evening, she mumbled about meeting up with a classmate, which wasn’t a total lie.

After a moment, she straightens her posture once more, sending Ricky an assuring smile over her shoulder. Silently saying that she was okay, and didn’t need to worry about her. She looks back to the group that was approaching them as Ricky presses pause on the movie that they weren’t paying all that much attention to when they had entered.

“I forgot you guys were coming back today.” Nini comments, “How was the convention?”

EJ’s eyes flick between the pair curiously, but before he could comment on his roommate and the brunette next to him, Seb interrupts the raven-haired man as he shoots him a sharp look.

“It was fantastic! Really fun, so many things to see and people to meet. There were so many panels and we learned so much. I mean, EJ still can’t dance, but one convention won’t change that. Anyways, how was your weekend?” He asked politely, taking a seat on the opposing couch.

Ricky laughs while EJ lets out a disgruntled noise taken offense to the blonde’s comment. “It was good, we went to Nate’s party and studied yesterday. Definitely not as fun as whatever you guys got up to this weekend.” Ricky shrugs, gesturing to the group that was taking a seat joining the pair in the living room.

Gina’s eyes widen in shock, “Hold up,” she brings a hand up in front of her pausing the conversation, “You’re telling me that future doctor Nina Salazar-Roberts went to a party without us?! And stayed out later than she would deem acceptable! Ricky what did you do to her?” She puts a hand to her chest mocking her disbelief as she jokes around with the pair.

After taking a sip from her drink, Nini clears her throat sending her roommate a pointed look, “I know how to have fun.” She chides, hitting Ricky in the chest, “Tell her dumbass.”

The boy shakes his head laughing, “Oh definitely, spent all night partying. Then all day talking about binomial nomenclature and chemical compounds while trying to memorize how to fucking spell deoxyribonucleic acid.” He jokes, the brunette laughing right alongside him. The pair had spent nearly half an hour trying to spell it from memory, before they finally got it.

The joke, if it even was a joke, confused the group that had just entered wondering what the hell they were talking about. To them they could be making hilarious jokes or being completely serious and it would simply go over their heads. Chemistry wasn’t the group’s strong suit, that’s why they were either in business or the arts.

“What?” EJ pipes up confused.

“DNA.” Nini answers easily.

“And this is why I major in film and not pre-med.” Carlos points out, laughing with the group, “You guys make it look so easy.”

The pair shake their heads, “It’s really not. I probably spent the last 24 hours trying to study for our test on Friday and I feel like nothing is processing.” Nini mutters, beginning to feel nerves build up inside her as she thinks about how much she still needs to go over before the end of the week.

Ricky nudges his shoulder into hers pulling her out of her thoughts, “Constantly studying isn’t good for you. This is why I called for a movie night, you need to breathe sometimes.” He looks down at the girl.

“Thank god! Maybe she’ll listen to you and learn to just let go.” Gina interrupts the pair.

The boy scrunches his nose for a second, “I get it, though. Pre-med is a kick in the ass, but what I think you need Dr. Pretty is to know when you’re overworking yourself.” He tucks a strand of hair behind her ear gently.

The brunette’s heart swells at his statement. No matter how much she loves her friends, she always felt like they thought she was just a boring, plain jane. Someone that didn’t know how to have fun and to relax. But Ricky didn’t agree with that mentality, he knew how hard it was. He knew how hard they had to work to get where they are and to stay in their program.

He didn’t say she didn’t know what fun was. He didn’t say that she needed to let go and enjoy life. Studying and work is her life, with Netflix and books on the side. He understood that. He wanted what was best for her, and that was to do what she loved without working herself down to the bone. She was capable of it, having done it too many times the last few years.

As he locks eyes with the brunette, as if he was asking her if she understood and was taking his words to heart. The girl smiles more with her eyes than her mouth, as she bites her lip for a second, nodding at the boy.

“Perfect.” He smiles, “Now, do you guys want to join in on movie night?” He averts his gaze to their friends who were watching them carefully.

Gina shakes her head, “No, you guys have fun. We’re tired from the drive, we just came by to say hi anyway.” She stands up from her seat, “Let me know when you’re heading home Nins, I’ll head back with you.”

The brunette leans back into the couch, feeling Ricky’s arm move slightly behind her resting his hand on her waist loosely. She nods at her roommate’s request, as she bids Seb and Carlos goodbye.

Ricky presses play on the TV once more, bringing themselves back into the movie. Nini already muttered about how she hated how they portrayed the scene in the movie, deeming it a lot better in the books.

And to their friends' surprise, Ricky starts asking her questions about the differences purely out of curiosity. They knew how much Nini talked during movies, and were shocked that Ricky didn’t get annoyed with how much she spoke while the movie still played on the screen. Clearly evident he cared more about what the brunette was ranting on about, than what was actually happening in the movie.

As the group moves back towards the front door where they had all entered from earlier. Carlos and Seb start pulling on their shoes, completely out of ear shot from the chattering pair that were nuzzled up on the couch.

“What was that?” EJ whispers.

His girlfriend shakes her head in confusion, “I don’t fucking know.”

“I think we’re starting to see Nini let him in. And honestly, it’s about time.” Carlos mutters quietly, as he ties his shoe.

Seb nods along in agreement, “Let her figure this one out on her own Gi. You know she likes it that way, and I think she already knows there’s something there. You can see it in her eyes.” He adds.

“She looks happier.” Gina states, looking over to the laughing girl as she leans further into Ricky’s side. “He just makes it look so easy, like, to understand her. And it only took him a weekend.”

“It’s because he’s just like her. Meticulous, hardworking, and they both have a big heart. They get each other.” EJ comments, patting Carlos on the shoulder once he stood back up to his full height opening the door for the couple.

Carlos sends a smile to the pair, “My bets by graduation.” He chuckles, as the other three send him an incredulous look. “What? I love them, I do. But no matter how smart they are, they are both really dumb.”

“I mean he called her pretty, maybe it’ll be sooner than you think.” Seb nudges his boyfriend.

The group laughs, “Maybe. But I know Nini, and that girl’s going to deny it until she fucking combusts.” Gina chuckles, “I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.”

\--

“How do you think you did?” Nini asks Ricky as they make their way to his car.

It was Friday and they had their last class of the day, which they completed the test that they had been studying together basically every day since Saturday. Kourtney was made aware of the new pair when her and Gina got home Sunday night. And as if she was trying to prove to Kourtney they weren’t joking, which she wasn’t, Ricky had come by the following Monday picking Nini up for their first class with a cup of coffee in hand for her.

The two girls tried to joke with Ricky about how gross it was that their roommate would only ever drink black coffee. But to their surprise, he countered claiming how it was weird when they added copious amounts of sugar and milk to theirs. They continued to joke around until it was time for the pair to head off to class.

It felt like Ricky and Nini had known each other since forever, instead of only connecting barely a week ago. Within the last few days, they’ve barely separated, only during the nights and on Tuesday and Thursday when they had the opposite schedule. But other than that, they spent hours studying or watching TV together.

As the days went by, Nini started falling for the boy faster than she’d like to admit. She couldn’t in her right mind just fall for someone that she had only just started connecting with. But for some reason, Ricky made her want to throw caution to the wind and risk it all.

However, Nini was well aware that she was not ready for a relationship. She knew she had to be more secure in herself, still working herself incredibly hard in school and all her extra activities that she does. Sometimes forgetting her friends during her most stressful of times, and she needed to learn how to balance that out first before she commits to something more than just friendship – no matter how much she wanted it.

“Good, I hope.” He chuckles, “Sushi and a rom-com tonight? You know, to celebrate.”

The brunette shakes her head at his poor excuse, “If you just wanted to hang out with me, all you have to do is say so.” She teases, knocking her shoulder into his, well into his bicep seeing as the girl was significantly shorter than the man.

Ricky wraps his arm around her shoulder tightly, pulling her in close, “I want to hang out with you, Dr. Pretty.” He leans in impossibly close to the side of her face, “Is that what you wanna hear?” He whispers, sending shivers down her spine.

“Shut up.” Nini mutters, their proximity causing the girl’s heartbeat to quicken, in nervousness and hint of excitement.

The boy pauses for a second, as if he was having an internal debate, but leans in to press a loud and long kiss to her cheek. Which Nini scrunches her nose at the sound, raising her arm to wipe the sleeve of her sweatshirt across her cheek where he had kissed her. Despite the fact that the contact of his lips on her cheek spiked her pulse and made her feel a swarm of butterflies flutter through her stomach, she couldn’t help but feel grossed out by the amount of spit he had left behind.

“Gross, why was that so wet?” She utters in disgust.

The boy pouts down at the brunette, “Are you calling me gross? I’m offended, Nini.”

“I did, Dr. Dumbass. Because the amount of spit you left on my cheek wasn’t cute.” She rolls her eyes as he acts hurt, holding a hand above his heart as if she had shot him in his beloved organ.

There was a glint in the boy’s eyes as he leaned in to press another open-mouthed kiss to her cheek, to which Nini saw. Quickly, she ducked out of his hold as she put a hand up in between them trying her best to keep their distance.

“Stop. You cannot make out with my cheek!” She argues.

“Please,” Ricky scoffs, “Your cheek is lucky to make out with me.”

The brunette scrunches her nose in disgust once more, “I think, I’m going to hang out with Kourtney, or Gina maybe even EJ. I know they won’t try and make out with my cheek.” She huffs, turning around in the other direction.

Ricky couldn’t help but roll his eyes at the girl’s playful excuse, he grabbed her wrist before she could walk away too far. “I promise not to make out with your cheek, if you come to dinner with me.” He smiles brightly, “And a movie, but we both know that’s a given.”

Pretending to think about his request, she couldn’t help but laugh as Ricky began to become impatient pulling at her wrist trying to get her to agree. “Fine, but keep your spit where it belongs, please.” She begs, letting the boy drag her towards his car.

As they settle in their seats, Ricky looks over to the brunette who had just finished buckling her seat. He tentatively runs his index finger along her cheek, the same one he had kissed just a few minutes ago.

“You have a pretty cheek, Dr. Pretty.” He flirts with the brunette, feeling the sudden change in temperature of her skin. He couldn’t help but smirk realizing the effect he had on the brunette next to him.

She takes a hold of his finger in her small fist, “You can admire, but keep your lips to yourself.”

Ricky laughs, throwing his head back as he brings his attention back to the car, pulling out of his parking spot. “I admire you every day, Nini.” He grins, as he sees Nini turn her head away from him, looking out the window trying her best to hide her blush from him.

The boy chuckles, mostly to himself, loving that the smallest things he says could rile up the brunette. It was quite amusing, and wondered when the day would come that he’d finally be bold enough to admit what he felt for the brunette. But what they had right now sufficed, he was happy, and she was happy, that’s all that really mattered.

\--

As per usual, Nini was hunched over her scattered notebooks and textbooks scrawling just about anything and everything she thought was important while reading through the texts and her lecture notes. Nini had been cramming the last week, having dropped off the face of the earth to all of her friends while she studied for the last of her midterms and rushed through a few papers due at the end of the week.

She can’t remember the last time she had left her room or ate something that would be considered substantial. The brunette was currently fueled with cups of coffees and random granola bars and crackers that she had stored in the depths of her drawers. Refusing to move until she was in need of a bathroom break, which quickly followed with a refill on her coffee cup.

The stress that came with midterm week constantly overwhelmed Nini, like it has done in the previous semesters. She recalls their first semester freshman year, Nini hadn’t taken work nearly half as seriously as she does now to study and get everything done. She cried when her midterm grades came in, deeming them not good enough. But Kourtney had insisted that an 83 was incredible for college.

That was when Nini realized that college was a completely different ball game. She was so used to achieving high 90s, never seeing anything reach below a 90 in all her years in school, so an 83 was basically a fail to the brunette. Ever since then she had claimed that she was going to throw herself into her work, knowing that to get into a good medical school her grades had to be through the roof.

Medical school is extremely competitive and Nini had to be the best of the best. She wouldn’t take anything less than that. If she didn’t get into med school she doesn’t know what she’ll do. So, following what she likes to call the dark semester, she changed her studying habits allocating a certain amount of time for each of her classes. The brunette creates a schedule at the beginning of every semester, ensuring there’s enough time to work on every class every day, along with working at the local record store and volunteering at the hospital on the weekends. Everything was planned to the second.

And, in the last two weeks she had been a little more lenient on her schedule. Which caused her to begin to become stressed more than usual over how behind she was. Needing every second of every day to simply catch up on her studying. She was nearly on the verge of tears thinking that if she got a grade lower than a 90 she could literally kiss med school goodbye.

While she scrawled in her notebook, her door creaked open carefully. The brunette didn’t even bother to look up, “Kourt, I can’t today. I have 3 midterms this week and a paper due on Friday. Unless you’re here to bring me another coffee, I don’t want to hear it.” She mutters, switching out her pens, needing the black one to etch a new subheading on the page.

“Not Kourtney, and she said you’ve had too much coffee today.” Ricky speaks, closing the door behind him, closing a few of her notebooks and pushing them to the side settling in next to her. He casually leans against her headboard while waiting for the brunette to respond.

The brunette couldn’t tear her eyes away from the page as she continued to write. She switches her pens out once more, “I don’t know what you’re doing here dumbass, but I don’t have time.” She mumbles, as her eyes flick between her notebook that was resting on her knee to the textbook that was sitting in front of her.

A hand lands on her back, running it up and down comfortingly. In an instant, Nini felt herself physically relax into his touch but that didn’t stop her from jotting down her notes. When she doesn’t halt her studying, Ricky presses his thumb into the space between her shoulder blades, feeling a big knot nestled in her muscles.

“What did I say about overworking yourself, Nins?” He questions, continuing to try and loosen up the knots that were noticeable throughout her back.

The brunette lets out a low moan dropping her head down to her chest, the feeling of her muscles beginning to relax for the first time in ages. But she shakes her head, trying her best to shrug him off, “I can’t Ricky. I can’t fail.” She confesses, focusing back in on the notes in front of her.

Slowly he moves to take the notebook out of her lap and tosses it further down her bed, the book dangerously close to the foot of the bed where it was teetering to topple over the edge. At the moment, Ricky couldn’t care if it did.

“You won’t fail, Nini.” He assures the brunette.

For the first time since he had walked in, she locks eyes with the boy. Ricky instantly noted the sadness and stress filled in her brown orbs. The smile he’s grown accustomed to was no longer graced on her face, he slowly runs his hand to wrap around her shoulder trailing it down her arm gently.

“How do you do it?” She asks out of the blue.

The boy was confused at her question, “What do you mean?” He asks for clarification.

Shifting her position leaning her knees against his thigh, she looks up at him. Ricky instantly sees how tired she is, from the dark circles evident underneath her eyes to the way she could barely manage to open her mouth when she spoke.

Tiredly, she starts, “How do you not let it get to you? Like the stress of med school and being good enough to get in. You make it look so easy to just let go and have fun. My friends don’t think I know what fun is, and honestly I think they’re right.” She rambles, she started off looking into his eyes, but as each word fell from her mouth, she lost her confidence. By the end of her spiel she was looking back down to her lap, toying with the pen that remained in her hand.

“That’s not true. You are so much fun, and if your friends think that maybe they just don’t understand that you have fun in different ways.” He softly mutters, “And, who said I don’t worry? Sure, I try my best to go to parties and hang out with my friends and do so many things. But it’s because I’m scared of missing out. That doesn’t mean the stress of school doesn’t get to me.”

Ricky watches the brunette carefully, as she nods along to what he was saying. He knew that she was taking what he said to heart, no matter how hard she tried her stress and insecurities always took over. And he couldn’t blame her, it’s hard to push them aside.

It took Ricky years for him to even consider doing so, but he knew it wasn’t healthy to drown himself in work, and he didn’t want to watch Nini go through the same thing. Now he understood why his friends were so concerned for him the last few years. He saw himself in Nini, and watching her beat herself up for thinking she’s not good enough clenches at his heart.

He takes the pen she was fiddling with out of her grasp, causing the girl to let out a small protest. Ignoring her strangled noises, he tosses it onto her nightstand so she couldn’t grab it again. “I can’t sit here and watch you overwork yourself. I care about you too much to let that happen.” He tells her.

Scrunching her eyebrows in confusion, “Why? We only just started becoming friends like a month ago.”

“You said it yourself, Nini.” He starts, running his hand down her back once more letting it fall to her hip. “You’re my friend, and I don’t want to see you collapse. I’ve been there and I can’t let you go through that too.”

The brunette takes in a deep breath finally letting herself relax, the first time in over two weeks. Ricky shifts his arm to wrap around resting his hand on her stomach, pulling her into his chest, causing the brunette to let out a loud laugh.

The sudden burst of laughter confused Ricky, he looked down at the brunette wondering where it had come from. Shyly Nini turns her head, “Sorry, I’m just very ticklish.”

Tilting his head with an amused smile adorned on his face, an idea instantly popping in his mind. The hand that rested on her stomach started to move to her side, bringing his other hand to tickle her other side trapping her in.

“RICKY!” She squeals trying to contain her laughter, trying her best to escape his hold. “S-S-STOP I-IT! I-I CAN’T I-IT T-TIC-K-K-TICKLES”

The boy continues to tickle her sides, the pair erupting into a fit of laughter as Ricky keeps the girl locked in his grasp, letting his fingers roam her sides. Ricky’s eyes crinkling at the corners as he watches the brunette’s smile grow wider as she tries to catch her breath between her laughter.

“Good god, I thought you broke her.” Gina comments, watching the pair leaning against Nini’s door frame amused by the scene in front of her.

Finally stilling his fingers, giving Nini the chance to properly catch her breath. They look over to the girl who had a small smirk on her face, like she knew something that they didn’t. Ricky leans back against the headboard once more, moving his hands back to his lap. The girl missed the feel of his hands on her, despite having attacked her just a few moments ago.

Ricky chuckles, “Well, I definitely broke her out of the zombie studying or whatever she’s been doing the last week.”

The joke caused Gina to laugh lowly as Nini’s face contorted as she smacked Ricky’s thigh offended. “Shut up.” She mutters.

The boy barely phased simply smiles at the brunette. “You know I’m right, pretty.” He grins, drawing little stars on the girl’s arm.

Gina clears her throat, catching the pair’s attention once more, “Well, we’re all going out for dinner and maybe hit this karaoke bar. And since you haven’t eaten a proper meal in days Ni so we can go anywhere of your choice.”

“You haven’t eaten?” Ricky snaps his head in the brunette’s direction, concern filling his eyes. The finger that was tracing along her arm freezes, placing a gentle hand on her forearm, trying his best to get her to answer.

At the question, Nini shoots Gina a sharp look. Deciding to ignore Ricky’s pleading eyes she moves out of her spot, piling up all of her books placing them on her desk in the order she always liked to have them in.

Pulling her hair out of its messy bun shaking out her long locks, she turns to Gina. “How does ramen sound? There’s this one ramen house I went to with Kourt a while back and it was really good.” She mentions, checking herself out in the mirror, making sure her hair didn’t look completely crazy.

The girl nods, “Perfect, I’ll text everyone. We’ll head out around 6.” She phrases it more as a statement than a suggestion.

As Gina makes her way out of the room, Nini stands in front of her closet wondering what she should wear. She shuffles through a few pairs of tops, debating if she’ll be cold if she decides to go with a crop top.

In the end, the girl decides on a simple white crop top with a washed out vintage design on it, having bought it back in high school. Something’s just never changed she thinks, remembering the how in love she was when she saw it years ago. The simple piece of cotton was probably still one of her favourites, loving it just as much as she did when she had purchased it.

Also, pulling out a pair of her nicer leggings, having been wearing the same ratty old leggings for a few days now. She’s only ever really changed her top the past week, and threw on a sweater when she went to class.

Before she could make her way to the bathroom to change, Ricky quickly beckons her over. The brunette nearly forgot he was there. It was a bad habit but when she was incredibly focused on something she had the tendency to let everything around her disappear.

Slowly the brunette takes a seat on the edge of her bed next to Ricky who had shifted his position since she had left him to start picking out an outfit. Nini fully knew what he was about to say, so before he could lecture or prod her about her habits the last few days she decided to speak up for herself.

“I know, Ricky. And I ate enough, trust me. I know what I’ve been doing isn’t healthy or good for me. And believe me, I’ll do better, I promise.” She toys with the clothes in her hands, keeping her eyes trained on the outfit.

The boy puts an arm around her pulling her into a hug, “We both know that it wasn’t enough Nini. I trust that you know what you’re doing, just please take care of yourself first.” He whispers into her hair, “And it’s good to talk these things out. Your friends are on your side, babe. But if you feel like you can’t talk to them, you can always come to me. Always.”

The brunette nods pulling away from the boy ignoring the nickname that had slipped from his lips, “I’m going to change in the bathroom.” She utters quietly, looking down at her hands once more, pausing for a second.

Hesitantly she presses a kiss to his cheek, “Thanks Ricky.” She whispers with a small grin on her face, making her way to the bathroom.

Despite all the flirting and bantering Ricky likes to initiate with the girl, the small little action caused a blush to rise to his cheeks. He ducks his head as he sneaks a quick glance at the retreating brunette, a number of thoughts running through his mind. That maybe, she felt something too.

-

“Nini! You have to sing!” Kourtney shouts out, handing her the song book as she cradled her cup to her chest.

They were at a karaoke bar across town that had just opened up. EJ had managed to pull a few strings with one of his water polo buddies and got them a private room, instead of belting out their singing to a bunch of strangers. And given that this place was the hot new spot to check out in town, there were crowds of students and most of which the group would rather not have their classmates hear their tipsy or horrible singing voices.

The ramen house they had gone to was incredible. And Nini finally got the chance to meet Ricky’s third roommate, Big Red, and the boy’s girlfriend, Ashlyn. Apparently EJ had set them up, or, as Gina puts it, as it completely being her idea and had to force EJ’s hand in setting them up. The red-headed boy had lived up to his name and the kind words spoken about him. And now at the karaoke bar with a few drinks running through the boy’s system, she sees where the utter chaos description came from.

Big Red, Carlos and Seb had done a rather rendition of _Stop_ by the Spice Girls. With Carlos being rather controlling in the dance steps, constantly correcting Big Red’s footing. _‘No, Red! It’s left, right left, not right, left, right!'_ And Big Red had complained back, arguing that he had taken tap for years so he knows that the steps are definitely right, left, right. With all the arguing, the red-head didn’t see the chair a few feet away from him and had managed to completely trip over the chair and crashed to the floor. It was hard to keep their laughter, with a few of them shouting out ‘ _Classic Redonovich_.’

Gina nudges her from where she was seated next to her, “Yeah Nins, I haven’t heard you sing since freshman year!” She nods along to Kourtney’s request.

“You sing?” Ricky asks.

The brunette shrugs nonchalantly, “I used to dabble, but had to get serious with school. So, I’m out of practice.” She mutters as she flips through the pages in the book as EJ and Ashlyn were belting out to _Lean on Me_ , a Caswell karaoke favourite she had learned.

“Dabble?” Gina scoffs, “Please, Nini used to do those open-mic nights. She sings like a literal angel.” She talks up her best friend with a sly smirk on her face.

At the sight of the smirk Nini instantly knew what the girl was trying to do. Nini shoots the girl a sharp look, trying to tell the girl to stop talking, incredibly embarrassed about the little tidbit of her past that she didn’t talk about much.

When Nini had turned 16, she had started going to a bunch of open mic nights with her friends from high school. It gave her a break from all the studying and work she would do during the week. And when college had come around, she had put her singing ‘career’ if you could even call it that, on the back burner. She had still gone to a few open mic’s that her roommates had told her about, but they became sporadic over time. So sparse to the point that by sophomore year she had completely stopped going.

Don’t get her wrong, she still loves to sing. It’s one of her secret passions, but being so focused on school and just the reality of life she kind of let her singing be put to rest. She still sang, mostly in the shower or when she was baking. Sometimes if she couldn’t understand a concept, she would write a song, which definitely helped her pass her moral philosophy class last semester. But she hasn’t sung in front of an audience for nearly 3 years now.

“Well,” Ricky knocks his body into hers lightly as her eyes were focused on the pages in front of her skimming for a song, “I’m really excited to hear you.”

“Don’t be shy, Ricky.” Big Red says rather loudly, “You used to sing all the time in high school.” He basically exposes Ricky.

This fact perks Nini’s ears, she turns to look at Big Red curiously. She props her chin up on her hand, “Really, now? Tell me about it!” She speaks with bright eyes, curiosity and intrigue filled through her brown orbs.

She hears Ricky groan next to her, she vaguely waves him off, not even bothering to look at the boy, “Shut up, Dr. Dumbass, I’m sure this is going to be good.”

Big Red had a large small plastered across his face, “Oh it is, trust me.” A twinkle appears in the boy’s eyes as he beckons his girlfriend and EJ over back to the group after singing the last note to their favourite song.

“When we were in high school,” the red-headed boy starts leaning forward on his elbows, “We were friends with a bunch of guys from the football and baseball team, now that I think about it, they were a bunch of stupid idiots.”

Ricky chuckles, leaning back as he props an arm on the edge of the couch behind Nini, “They really were, they dared us to do these really stupid and crazy things, like they would climb water towers and do these crazy dirt bike tricks that probably landed them in the hospital a thousand times over. They weren’t professionals, not even in the slightest. Barely trained to.”

The groups interest peaking as they pay closer attention to the two boys. Big Red tosses an olive at his best friend’s head, “Shut up, don’t try and distract us from the real story at hand.”

“Anyways when we were juniors,” the red-head continues, “They dared Ricky to audition for the school’s musical. And no one knew this fucker could sing. Imagine our shock when he fucking lands the lead.”

Everyone’s eyes widened in shock. Ricky never broadcasted about his musical theatre days. It wasn’t that he wasn’t embarrassed, the opposite actually. But it was a one time thing, no matter how much the drama club and teacher had begged for him to audition again for the next few musicals. It was fun he’ll admit, gained a family from it some of which he still talked to.

In senior year, Ricky did consider auditioning for the musicals, but with his football schedule, working part time and having to keep up with his studies; it was simply too much for one teenager to handle. So, he made the executive decision to drop the musical and focus on other things.

The boy throws his head back in laughter at Big Red’s story retelling, “I made the best Daddy Warbucks high school theatre has ever seen.” He jokes.

“That’s unfortunate, I was kind of hoping to see teenage Ricky play Annie.” EJ bursts into a fit of laughter at his own joke, causing a few of their friends to join in. The group mostly laughed about the fact that EJ was simply laughing at his own joke.

Carlos chucks a balled up napkin at the boy, the object barely grazing his arm. “Why did you never tell me? I’m literally all about theatre.” He questions.

Ricky shrugs, “Not a big deal. I did one musical in my day, and that’s when my theatre career started and ended.”

“Well, I would like to hear you sing.” Nini smiles at the boy, giving him the song book.

“Nope, Dr. Pretty. You first.” He refuses to take it from her, pushing it back in her direction. Nini couldn’t help but roll her eyes at the man as she tried to push the book into his grasp.

The pair went back and forth a few times before Seb got fed up, “Why don’t you guys just sing a duet?” He offers, instead of watching the pair argue who was going to sing first.

“I love that idea!” Ashlyn pipes up, “You guys have to!”

The pair lock eyes as if silently asking if that was something they would be interested in. From any spectator, it looked like the pair were having a conversation with their eyes and minds not needing to say a word to understand what the other was trying to communicate. Probably giving off the sense that they have been friends for years, when in reality they’ve only been friends for only a few weeks now.

“How about a classic?” Nini suggests, flipping through the book remembering a song she had seen earlier that had caught her attention.

Curiously, Ricky leans closer to the girl, his head hovers about her shoulder. The pair were so close, that Ricky’s breathing caused the hair on her shoulder to fly a little. The girl couldn’t help but giggle, nudging him knowing they had both noticed it.

Once Nini’s finger grazes down the page finally spotting the song she knew she wanted. Looking to Ricky for his approval, and given the smile that grew on his face she instantly knew his answer.

Taking the two microphones from Ashlyn, plugging in the number. As the first few notes play, the iconic song starts to play through the loud speakers. The group's eyes brighten as they cheer for the brunette’s song selection.

Ricky stands up offering a hand to the brunette to which she takes. Nini smiles at the group, “A little bit of a duet, a little bit of a group number, a little bit of theatre and definite classic.” The girl exclaims to the group.

“It’s perfect.” He smiles down at the brunette, tightening his hold on her hand as he belts out the first verse of _Summer Nights_ , a Grease classic. Nini jumps excitedly as she watches his voice smoothly escape his mouth, hitting every note perfectly.

Ricky glancing away from the screen that displayed the lyrics, “ _I met a girl, crazy for me_ ” he sings, locking eyes with the brunette smiling as wide he could manage as he serenades the girl, the that’s been on his mind more than he’d like to admit.

The girl’s cheeks flare up as he pulls her closer, the brunette nearly missing her cue. In a split second decision she decides to twist the lyrics just a little bit knowing it rile the boy up, “ _Met a boy, dumb as can be_.” She sings proudly, smiling up at the boy who pulls an offended face.

Giddily she jumps wrapping her arm around his neck as they sing the next line together, glancing back to the screen completely letting the world around them disappear. Their friends looked on knowingly, watching as the pair had a gleam in their eyes when they looked at each other like nothing else mattered.

Kourtney nudged Big Red with a sly smile on her face the pair instantly knew what the other was alluding to. The girl grabs two extra microphones, handing one to the red headed boy. All of them crowding around the microphones jumping in when the Thunderbirds and Pink Ladies are meant to sing.

The sudden burst from the group startled Nini and Ricky, the pair's heads snapping in the direction of their friends laughing as Ashlyn sings, pointing to Ricky, “ _Like does he have a car?_ ”

Everyone continues to sing happily, jumping up excitedly as they continue on with the number. The group moved and danced around each other until the tempo dropped, leaving Ricky and Nini to sing their solos.

Dramatically, Nini takes a few steps back from the curly-haired boy as she belted out her part. Ricky, not able to take the distance between them, he slowly moves towards her sticking his hand out for her to hold once again, as their voices begin to collide he spins her around the pair singing the last note.

There was a moment of silence, the pair not able to take their eyes off each other. Ricky holds her close as he breaks into a small smile, the brunette immediately returning it. There was a split second, Nini thought he had started to lean a little closer.

That second was interrupted by a loud thump coming from Big Red who had seemed to try and sit back on the couch, but misjudged the distance and had just wound up on the floor. Nini quickly snaps her head in the direction, trying to keep her giggle in feeling bad the boy had poor spatial perception whilst under the influence.

She drops her mouth onto Ricky’s shoulder stifling her laugh, while the boy just let out a loud laugh. He didn’t expect anything less from his best friend, having always been the clumsiest person he’s ever met. And seeing as he was his number one skating buddy, he was surprised Big Red didn’t get into more accidents than Ricky himself.

After everyone had calmed down after their laughing fit, Nini pulls Ricky back to their friends. Both putting their small moment to the back of their minds for now, Nini picking up the song book shoving it towards Seb insisting that he should sing next.

Ricky smiles as he watches the brunette enthusiastically talk to Big Red about his paintings around his apartment, asking a number of questions about his process and where he gets his inspiration from. Ricky couldn’t help but think about how well his best friend and the girl that’s been on his mind the last while now.

Oh, and yeah, he was definitely leaning in.

\--

As promised, whenever Nini had felt like she had studied for too long, or what Ricky deemed as too long, she would find herself taking a break. Usually hanging out in the living room with the girls who were either doing their nails or watching whatever Netflix had to offer.

Other times Nini found herself showing up at Ricky’s apartment, or he would pick her up and they would go grab ice cream or anything to take her mind off whatever was stressing her out. Occasionally, the entire group would get together and would always find something fun to do in town.

After the last of her midterms, Nini finally felt like she could breath. She was no longer stressed about having to study until her brain went numb. And with the help of Ricky and her friends, she had finally started figuring out how to balance her school life and her personal life.

The brunette was at Ricky’s apartment, the place having turned into her second home over the past few weeks. Her head rested against Ricky’s thigh as he mindlessly threaded his fingers through her tangled locks

As expected from any young adolescent boy, Ricky had picked out a Marvel movie, the boy excited that it was finally his turn to choose the movie. He had opted for the ‘cinematic masterpiece’ or at least that’s what he called it, of _Avengers: Endgame_.

They were halfway through the movie when Nini shivers causing Ricky’s fingers to pause as he looks down at the brunette. He chuckles as he hooks a finger under her chin to turn her face to him, “Are you cold?” He questions.

“What do you think, Dr. Dumbass?” She bites, as she raises from her position moving to fit herself into his side. Instinctively Ricky wraps his arm around the girl as she leans her head on his shoulder.

Ricky couldn’t help himself but laugh, “You’re snippy today.” He jokes, rubbing his hand up and down her arm, trying to create some sort of friction producing a little bit of heat.

The small brunette scoffs moving out of his hold, “You know what, forget it.” She scoffs, moving to the other side of the couch folding her knees up sandwiching a pillow between her chest and legs.

Her behaviour had confused Ricky more than ever, watching as the brunette pulled the pillow closer to her chest as she focused back on the screen a small scowl on her face. Ricky knew it probably wasn’t a great idea, but decided to just do what his mind was telling him to do.

Lying across the couch on his stomach, propping his chin on the girl’s knees curiously. “What’s going on, pretty?” He questions.

“Nothing.” She insists, her eyes never leaving the TV.

Ricky couldn’t help but roll his eyes, moving back so he could properly wrap the brunette in his arms. The girl lets the pillow drop tumbling down to the floor as she tightly returns the hug to the curly-headed man. As her fingers touched the base of his neck, he couldn’t help but flinch slightly at the touch the girl’s fingers felt like ice against his warm skin.

“I’m really cold.” She whispers against his neck shivering.

He shouldn’t be surprised that she was cold. EJ insisted to crank up the air conditioning earlier that day and she had shown up in a pair of leggings and a crop top, definitely not exactly helping her fight the cold. He knew that it’s been incredibly warm in Utah lately, especially further south where they attended school.

Pressing his lips against her hair in a subtle kiss, he whispers against her hair, “Do you want a blanket, Nins?”

The brunette simply shakes her head, tightening her hold around him burying her head into his neck, “I just want a hug.” She whispers quieter than he had.

The pair remain silent for a little while longer, letting the only sounds around them come from the TV that was still playing the movie. Ricky was still concerned regarding the brunette’s odd behaviour, but decided against asking her anything. One of the reasons was that he was scared of her snapping at him again, but the more important reason was that he didn’t want to pry on anything that she didn’t want to talk about.

A loud noise comes from the entryway, EJ and Gina entering the apartment with a few bags in each of their hands. It was EJ’s turn to go on their grocery run, and Gina liked to tag along every time he went. She’s always loved running errands and going around town, even if it was just to pick up a few things they needed for dinner.

The couple greet the snuggling pair on the couch exchanging knowing looks between each other. Making their way back into the kitchen to unload everything they had bought. Gina shortly rifles through one of the bags grabbing the item Nini had requested for the girl to get on the way back.

Popping back into the living room, Gina grabs Nini’s attention with a slight tsk of her tongue. The brunette’s eyes widen at the object in the girl’s hand, she smiles happily, her arms instantly dropping from around the boy who was looking on, “Literally a life saver Gi.” She exclaims as Gina catches the small bottle of Tylenol.

Gina simply shrugs jokingly, “It’s what I do.” She chuckles, “They bad this time?” Her eyes instantly filling with concern, knowing the girl’s cramps was something not known to this world. Sometimes she wondered how her best friend could even walk around given the description of the pain the girl feels.

Nini frowns popping two pills in her mouth as she leans over to steal Ricky’s water, her glass already empty from earlier, swallowing the medication. Placing the glass back down on the table carefully, her hands running through her hair keeping it to one side so doesn’t smother Ricky, who was still holding her. He had loosened his grip as the two girls chatted, finally understanding why the girl’s behaviour had been a little off the last few hours.

“You know, the same.” Nini huffs, “I just can’t believe I ran out.”

Her roommate bursts into laughter, “More like you can’t believe you didn’t realize you were running low.” She jokes, Nini nodding in response with a small sigh escaping her lips completely agreeing with the girl. “Anyways, I’m going to finish helping EJ with the groceries and we’re going to the gym. I probably won’t be home ‘til later tonight.”

The brunette sitting on the couch nods in understanding bidding the girl goodbye and thanking her one last time for the bottle. Turning her attention back to the TV, focusing back in on the movie that was still playing.

However, Ricky had other plans as he persistently tapped Nini’s hip where one of his hands rested, begging for the girl’s attention. Finally looking at the boy, Ricky couldn’t help himself but blatantly ask, “Why didn’t you tell me you were on your period?”

Nini groans knocking her head into his, “First of all, it’s embarrassing. Second, why would you even ask me that? It’s a little weird.” She questions, wondering what had gotten into the boy’s mind.

“It’s not embarrassing, it’s natural.” Ricky says, Nini rolling her eyes at the boy. “I would like to know, so then I can mentally prepare.” He tries to joke.

The brunette scoffs at his response smacking him on the back of his head as he laughs. She tries to move out of the boy’s grip, but his arms tighten around her refusing to let the girl go. “Come on, Dr. Pretty,” he whines, pressing a kiss to her cheek, “We could’ve watched something you wanted to watch. I could’ve gotten you ice cream and chocolate and made sure you were comfortable, you know not being cold or anything.” He rambles on, doing what he could to reassure the girl he didn’t mean what he meant earlier. Okay, maybe he meant it just a little, but could you blame him?

“Ricky, I don’t need all those things. I’ve been dealing with them every month for the last seven years, I’m used to them.” She says, “Sure, they still hurt like a fucking bitch. But I’ll live, just five more days and I’ll be fine.”

“Fine,” Ricky mutters, tucking a lock of her hair behind her ear, “Well, is there anything I can do for you then? Anything you want, and it’s yours.”

Nini drops her head to her chest for a second then looking back up at Ricky, “I like your hugs.” She admits timidly, wondering what the boy will say.

The curly-headed man laughs, leaning in closer to the brunette his arms fully encircling her waist, “I thought my cuddles were a given.” He smiles, despite his quickening pulse.

“That’s all I need right now.” Nini mutters, “I’ve got my pills and my Ricky cuddles.” She leans back to smile at the boy, “Oh, can we also get a blanket?” She asks with a mischievous grin on her face.

Ricky throws his head back, “I fucking told you, Nini.” He moves to grab the blanket off of the armchair, throwing it on top of Nini as he slides back in beside her. The brunette’s legs find their way to drape over his lap as he pulls her into a tight hug.

“You can’t say these things to me, Dr. Dumbass. I’m emotional and I’m already going to cry at the end of this movie and we don’t want to see an ugly Nini more than once today.” She says, making herself comfortable in the boy’s arms.

The curly-haired man frowns at the girl, “Don’t say that. You’re always pretty, even when you cry.” He reprimands.

“You haven’t seen me cry.” She reminds him.

“Don’t need to,” Ricky shakes his head, “You’ll always be pretty to me, Nins.”

“Whatever.” She mutters.

Ricky couldn’t help but chuckle at the girl, “Take the compliment.” He remembers telling her a couple months ago during their first night they had officially become friends. Neither of them were exactly prepared that night for the bond they were quickly going to form.

The pair didn’t notice the tall couple watching them from the kitchen’s doorframe speaking in hushed voices as they pointed out little tidbits in their roommates’ bond. Currently EJ was down for the count, having bet on 3 months for the pair to get their shit together. All of their friends had placed bets, and they were excited to see who wins, but more excited for them to get their heads out of their asses and finally admit what everyone can see.

\--

“You know,” Gina starts, returning from the kitchen three glasses in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other, carefully setting down the glasses on the coffee table. The girl carefully poured each glass for her and her roommates.

Handing the drink to the two girls on the one couch, she leans back comfortably on the couch taking a languid sip from her glass. Looking back to her friends, she continues, “If you want to date Ricky, just do it already.”

Nini chokes on her drink, nearly spitting it back into her glass, but she could hear her mother’s voice in her head of how unladylike and unsanitary that was. She manages to slow the liquid, a hand covering her mouth to make sure none of it dribbled down her chin when her lips were still around the glass.

The brunette shakes her head, looking over to Kourtney who didn’t seem phased by their roommate’s question. Turning her attention back to Gina, she notices her hiding her amused smile being her glass of wine.

Clearing her throat her brows furrowed in confusion, “Who said I want to date Ricky?” She asks her roommates, wondering where the accusation suddenly came from.

Kourtney erupts into laughter startling the two girls, she sets her glass down on the table while grabbing a few crackers popping one in her mouth. The girl nudges Nini with her foot, “Your eyes, your laugh, your heart. Girl, anyone can see you guys are real into each other.”

“Honestly, you guys make me feel single.” Gina laughs, “And, I’m dating his roommate!”

Nini takes a long sip from her glass, not quite sure what to say. The brunette was well aware of her feelings towards Ricky, has been since they had hung out together at that party a few months ago. And a lot has changed between her and the boy, they spent as much time as they could together. Whether they’d be studying, running errands, going out for a quick lunch between classes or watching whatever TV show Nini was currently binging at the time.

If Nini was being honest, Ricky probably knew more about Gilmore Girls than Gina and Kourtney. The brunette was incredibly grateful that he had some sense and was team Jess. Her roommates were completely team Dean, but they hadn’t been there during Jess’s fantastic arc. The girls had stopped watching ever since Nini had started watching with Ricky. Sure, maybe Ricky’s opinion was a little biased, but Nini didn’t care.

But despite Nini’s awareness of her feelings, she always tried to keep it pushed far down. Whenever Nini pictured her college career, she never pictured herself finding herself feeling something for someone more than just a stupid crush. But the last few weeks, Ricky had just slid into her mind and her heart. She couldn’t help but feel butterflies flutter around in her stomach every time he got a little closer than friends normally should be. He always managed to make her heartbeat quicken every time he complimented her or when he would kiss her temple.

She had it _bad_.

“Nins, I’ve bumped into you more times at the boy’s apartment than our own. Doesn’t that say something?” Gina points out. Kourtney puts a hand on Nini’s shoulder, rubbing her thumb along the fabric of her top, noticing the girl’s cheeks fire up thoroughly embarrassed by the conversation at hand.

Nini couldn’t even try to deny Gina’s comment. After the day’s they had class together, they would always make their way over to his apartment, since it was closer to campus and they would just spend hours together. And typically, Gina would already be there with EJ or would come back from work with Ashlyn in tow and Ricky and Nini were scattered across the kitchen table or in the living room studying for whatever test they had coming up.

The brunette did frequent Ricky’s apartment more, and a big reason, asides from him, was that she felt less stressed whenever she was there. Having Ricky to do everything with her, always helped Nini to relax and to not overwork herself. She hasn’t ‘zombie studied’ as Ricky likes to call it in nearly two months, which is a step up from the last couple of years.

“Babe, what’s going on between you and Ricky?” Kourtney asks gently.

Sighing dramatically, Nini takes a large swig from her wine letting the liquid trickle down her throat. It could be easy to push it aside and reject anything the girls were trying to insinuate but she starts to think about what Ricky had said a few months ago. It’s good to talk these things out.

After taking another large gulp, finishing off the glass that was definitely half full, knowing she’s going to need all the liquid courage to get her through this confession. Setting down the now empty glass, Gina already moving to refill it for the girl already telling by Nini's demeanor that she was going to need another drink.

Nini cradles the glass to her chest, taking one more sip. Clearing her throat from nonexistent phlegm, “Honestly, I don’t know.” She utters, the two girls looking at their roommate a little confused at the lack of an explanation.

“I just,” the girl looks up at the ceiling trying to figure out how to word it, “We flirt, like all the time. And it’s just so weird to me, because I’ve never felt like this for someone before. Like my heart literally wants to jump out of my body and melt into a fucking puddle on the floor.”

Gina stifles a laugh at the last bit of the girl’s confession, knowing it wasn’t the time to laugh but was unable to help herself. Nini shoots her a sharp glare scrunching her nose, unsure of why the girl was laughing.

“Sorry, sorry. It’s just kind of funny.” Gina apologizes.

The brunette’s eyebrows furrow as she takes a sip of her drink, her cheeks starting to flare up. Nini couldn’t tell if it was due to the alcohol or the fact that she was basically letting her walls down for Gina to laugh.

Kourtney chimes in, deciding to save Gina, “You’ve never talked like that before. Melting into a fucking puddle? Like, really Nini?”

The girl knew exactly what Gina was getting at because they’ve definitely talked about it before. They easily saw how Nini was finally letting loose, and letting people pass the tough exterior she usually puts up. It was definitely weird to see Nini so bright eyed as she tries to explain her feelings for the curly-headed boy.

Nini couldn’t help but pout, “It’s how I feel, okay? I don’t know, I’m not familiar with feelings. Like I know I like him, and I know he makes me feel all gross inside. I don’t understand what to do. Like why is it so easy for me to understand the different cerebrum lobes and what each part controls, and yet I can’t figure out why my heart starts to fucking feel like it’s running a goddamn marathon every time he puts his arm around me or kisses me on the cheek.” The brunette girl rants.

Setting her glass down on the table, the liquid sloshing at the sudden action spilling a little bit of wine on the wooden surface. The young woman was so frustrated she didn’t even bother to clean up the little droplets, even though she knows if she leaves it there long enough it’s going to soak into the wood.

Both Gina and Kourtney, move closer to the girl, each putting a hand on her, rubbing her arm and shoulder comfortingly, trying to calm the girl down. “Nini, not everything can be explained through the human body.” Kourtney starts carefully.

At the comment Nini was about to protest, but Kourtney applied more pressure on her arm silently telling her to just listen. “I know you want everything to have an explanation, and honestly things might be better that way. And it’s okay to not understand, it’s okay to dive in head first and not think about it. Because then you can learn, you can learn and understand together.”

“And, you’re already a step up for admitting you have feelings for him. Not everyone gets there that fast,” Gina pipes up, running a hand through the girl’s hair, “You guys have something special, you guys understand each other like we can’t. And Nini, I’ve never seen you happier.”

The small girl sucks in a sharp breath at the last sentence, not expecting it one bit. Was she really happier when he was around? Nini had always checked it off as being less stressed, and being able to take a breath. But maybe it was Ricky himself, he’s the one that brought a light into her life, one that she wasn’t expecting.

Nini closes her eyes focusing on her breathing, as she prepares to ask a question she wasn’t sure she was ready for.

“Am I delusional? Or do you think Ricky likes me too?”

“Likes?” Gina laughs, “God, I’m pretty sure he’s been in love with you since freshman year. EJ told me about how many times he talked about this girl in his classes during first year and when we started dating, we found out that girl was you.”

Kourtney chuckles as Nini’s jaw drops in shock, “Why do you think we tried to get you to go to all of those parties and friend hangouts and shit. It wasn’t that we thought you needed to stop studying-”

“Maybe just a little bit.” Gina interrupts.

“But, we were trying to set you guys up. We knew you guys would hit it off, it was just a matter of timing.” Kourtney finishes with a glare to the curly-headed girl for interrupting her.

Nini couldn’t help but bite her lip focusing on the drops of wine that were sitting on the table, still not bothered enough to clean it up. The girls’ admission was a lot to take in, she never realized how much her friends were trying to do what was best for her.

Sure, Ricky had helped her come to that realization months ago, when he convinced her to stop overworking herself. But she never knew the depth her friends had gone to trying to get her to at least become friends with him.

Another bit that really bothered her was that he’s known about her existence since freshman year. She never knew who he was until she had met him at a random hangout her friends had forced her to go to. She didn’t notice that they had classes together this semester until he had brought it up the day after the party they finally connected at.

It made so much sense now. The day she remembers officially meeting him, he was incredibly comfortable when talking to her. Each time she would just nod hoping the conversation would end, he would find something else to bring up. Nini had just ruled this as overly confident and deep down had wished she was that comfortable talking to strangers.

And the night of the party, he seemed to have no care in the world to dance with her in front of all those people. He probably knew at least a few people at the party, a lot more than he knew her for sure. But he decided to spend the night dancing and singing with her. He was even incredibly kind enough to drive her home.

In the last few months, he always offered to come by with food or to study with her or to watch any movie or TV show of her choice. He constantly flirts with her, and always seemed to have his hands glued somewhere to her body, even if they were out. But he also knew when she wasn’t in the mood for it, and he would take on a serious tone frequently asking her if she was okay and if she needed anything.

He was there for her when she was overworking herself, constantly reminding her that he cared about her and didn’t want to see her fall apart. He was there for her whenever she was feeling a little under the weather or sad, and always knew what to bring her.

Ricky was meticulous. He took pride in the smallest of details, whether that’d be in his school work or his personal life, but as of lately all of his focus was on the details regarding the small brunette.

He knew her coffee order (granted, he definitely should since it was also his order and had no extra add-ons), but he knew during her periods she preferred to drink vanilla iced lattes because she had a sweet tooth but hated the stereotypical chocolate and ice cream cravings.

He knew which of his sweaters was his favourite, always managing to choose the red sweater every time he offered one when she was cold. He knew her colour-coding system in her notes, and that she liked to talk during movies and TV shows and he never once complained. He knew she once dreamed about becoming a famous singer, but completely through that out the window when she realized a career in the arts wasn’t realistic.

Without realizing it, Ricky knew just about everything he needed to know about the brunette. He probably knew just as much as she did about herself. He cared about her, more than he should, Nini used to think. It always confused her on why he did, but given everything laid out in front of her, it’s easy to see.

He likes her, probably more than she liked him but she was getting really close.

Turning her head to look at the two girls, “What should I do?” She asks, not really sure herself.

“When you’re ready, you’ll know.” Gina says, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear. As silence falls on the three girls once more, Nini couldn’t help but pull them into a tight group hug. Maybe it was the alcohol controlling her limbs, or her heart, but she didn’t need to fully understand it. That much she learned today, that it’s okay to not understand.

Nini sighs, as the girls wrap their arms around her, “Soon.” She mutters, “Because I don’t want him thinking that I don’t, you know? Maybe it’s time for me to be the confident one.”

Kourtney smiles widely at her best friends, “You’ve always been confident Nins, just in your own way. But, I’m proud of you.”

“Proud?” She questions.

“For letting him in. For letting us in.” Gina answers.

Nini tips her head into Gina’s then to Kourtney’s, “Thank you for being patient with me. I love you guys.”

“And we love you.” Kourtney presses a kiss to her cheek.

\--

It had been three weeks since Nini had talked to girls about her feelings about the curly-headed boy. She knew that as the days go by she fell more in love with the boy than she’d like to admit. And, yes, she came to the conclusion that she loves him about a week ago.

Nini was having a rather rough day, being that time of the month and having been stressed out over her exams that were coming up at the end of the month. And Ricky had found out from Kourtney that the girl hadn’t left her room since she had gone to bed early the night before. He had showed up with a bouquet of flowers, a vanilla iced latte, and sushi, her absolute favourite.

Her heart swelled at the sight. She had nearly told him that day, but then she thought about the fact that she was bleeding out of places she’d rather not mention, and didn’t want that to be the day she told him.

That evening, they had gone out to a party, Nini and Ricky had a couple of drinks but decided to retire a little earlier than the rest of their friends. Both were tired from the long day they had, full of classes and cramming for their exams that were slowly approaching. They had ended up at Nini’s apartment, and they couldn’t decide on what to watch so Nini had just pulled up a random playlist off of her Spotify letting it play through the speakers.

Ricky was talking about his day out with Big Red and Ashlyn the other day. “You know, I’m getting tired being their third wheel.” He mumbles, as he taps a finger against her thigh to the beat of the song.

“That’s your fault dumbass. You decided to hang out with them.” She jokes, knocking his head slightly with her hand.

The boy frowns at the girl, “I had to! You were working, what else was I supposed to do?” He complains, pinching her skin lightly. It didn’t hurt one bit but Nini smacked his hand reprimanding him for the action.

“Oh, it’s my fault now, huh?” She mocks, “What do you want me to say? Sorry that I’m a hardworking woman that needs to put herself through med school?”

Not able to help himself, he shoots her his best puppy dog look sticking his bottom lip out a little, “An apology would be nice, pretty.” He continues to hold her stare, knowing he was slowly getting into her head.

The brunette rolls her eyes at the boy’s childish behaviour, “Oh, poor baby. I’m sorry.” She threads her fingers through his curls.

Leaning closer to the boy, she thinks about the conversation she had with the girls a few weeks back on the very couch they were sitting on. Nini couldn’t help but think, it’s finally time. It’s time for her to be the confident one. It’s time for her to accept that feelings don’t always make complete sense, but with the right person it’s okay – they’ll figure it out together.

Ricky’s eyes softened as he knew she was going to press a kiss to his cheek, but Nini couldn’t help but smirk as she placed her lips incredibly close to the corner of his mouth. As the girl pulled back, she couldn’t help but giggle as Ricky’s eyes widened in shock.

“Whoa,” his voice hoarse like something was caught in his throat, he pressed his lips together clearing his throat, “Getting a little close there, Dr. Pretty. An inch or two to the left and I might just think you want to kiss me.”

The brunette raises an eyebrow at the boy, as she shifts closer to the boy, her knees resting against his thigh as she drops her arm around his shoulder.

“And what if I did?” Nini asks boldly, she plays with the hair on the back of his neck.

At the question, Ricky’s eyes widened, not sure if the brunette was being serious or if there was still alcohol running through her system and that she was doing all the talking. The hand he had on her waist loosens for a second, as he fumbles with what he wants to say. “I-I, uh, I-I-I w-w-w” He stutters out.

Nini bites her lip as she watches Ricky try to form a sentence, and fails at that. The brunette chuckles, as she brings her other hand up tracing his freckles that were sprinkled across his now reddened cheeks.

“Where did my flirty Dr. Dumbass go?” Nini grins, her eyes squinting at the corners as her smile begins to widen as she looks at the flustered boy, “I thought he’d jump at the chance to get all up on this?” Nini suggests, her eyes flicking down her body and back up to the boy.

As Nini’s eyes travelled down her body, Ricky’s eyes couldn’t help but follow as he visibly gulped. Something that Nini had totally caught, seeing as Ricky was just a small second behind her.

Nini couldn’t help but let a smirk grace her face, locking eyes with Ricky once more. She drops the hand that was tracing his cheek to his forearm, tightening her hold on him as if daring him to do whatever she says next.

“Kiss me.”

Ricky’s eyes widen at the brunette’s request, “What?”

“I said kiss me, dumbass.” Nini repeats, “I want you to kiss me.”

Studying the brunette carefully, wondering if she was serious about her request. His eyes flicked between hers, silently asking her if she was sure. And she rolls her eyes at him, starting to lean further away from him taking it as him rejecting her.

And as if that was a wake up call, Ricky grabs the back of her neck the other coming around to her lower back as he roughly plants his lips on hers. Nini lets out a small noise, surprised by the sudden contact.

Instantly, she relaxes kissing the man back just as eagerly. The feel of his lips against hers was something she never wanted to forget. They were incredibly soft, Nini thought. He had smelled of his cologne that she’s come to love, and a little bit of sweat from the heat that came from the amount of people at the party earlier.

The hand he had on her back pushed Nini slightly. The girl understood what he was trying to do, and she swung her leg over his lap straddling the boy as he deepened the kiss pressing her closer to his body. Despite Nini practically demanding for him to kiss her, she felt her stomach twist up in knots overwhelmed by everything she was feeling, she could feel her pulse pounding in her ears as her heartbeat quickens.

As they begin to breathe a little deeper, Nini pulls away breathless. Her chest was heaving as she tried to regain some oxygen that was definitely lost while their lips were molded together. Ricky looks up at the brunette, her lips were plump and slightly parted and he couldn’t help but chuckle thinking that he had done that to her.

Nini scrunches her nose wondering why the boy was laughing. Ricky continued to laugh a little tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear, “Is that what you wanted?” He whispers, slightly out of breath.

“Sort of.” She mutters.

“What do you mean sort of?” Ricky questions, a little confused.

The brunette shifts on his lap slightly, “Ricky, I think I’m falling love with you and I know you’ve had a crush on me since like Freshman year and I just I-”

“Wait, wait, wait.” Ricky interrupts her, tightening his hold on her waist, “How do you know that?”

“EJ’s got a big mouth.” Nini chuckles, thumbing the side of his neck.

“He told you?!” He gasps, already starting to think up ways to kill his roommate.

Nini pulls on his hair harshly grabbing his attention once more, “It was Gina and Kourtney that told me. I’m pretty sure everyone knows, and- wait that’s not what matters here. Ricky, I just told you I’m falling in love with you and that’s all you could say?” She questions, feeling her heart drop down to her stomach.

Despite the boy not saying anything, she felt as if she was being rejected. The brunette starts to lift a leg, deciding she should probably get out of his lap before it got any more awkward and embarrassing for her.

Instantly, Ricky’s hand moves to her thigh, bringing her back down to his lap. “Nini, you know I have feelings for you. You literally just said it,” he laughs, “I’m just offended my friends did me dirty like that.”

The brunette stays silent as she stares at the buttons on the boy’s shirt not quite sure where to look. Ricky still hadn’t outright said what she was hoping for, and she didn’t know from what he had blurted was a good thing or a bad thing for them.

Noticing the brunette’s refusal to look at him again, he lifts her chin gently, “I love you, Dr. Nina “Pretty” Salazar-Roberts.”

The brunette bites her swollen lip as she tries to hide the biggest smile that wants to stretch across her face. And of course, her body deceives her and her smile widened to the point the apples of her cheeks started to hurt.

“I’m not a doctor.” She whispers. Ricky lets out a loud laugh, “You will be.” He responds as he pulls her back down to his lips, kissing the brunette much more tenderly than the last one.

“I love you too, Dr. Richard “Dumbass” Bowen.” She mumbles against his lips, nipping at him as she intensifies their kiss.

The young woman pressing her lips harder onto his as she leans closer into his body, pulling his hair roughly every time his hands tighten against her waist. His lips begin to trail down her jaw and to her neck sucking and nipping on her pulse point, satisfied once a red mark starts to form.

He shifts pushing her down against the couch, the brunette cradling the man between her legs. Ricky hovers over the girl’s face, his lips ghosting over hers as he whispers, “I’m not a doctor, babe.”

Nini giggles wrapping her arms around his neck, “Shut up, I’m manifesting.” She mutters, yanking on the man, slotting her lips against his once more.

Not able to keep his groan in as she nips at his lip, he pulls back moving to her ear. “I almost forgot,” he whispers breathless, “Will you be my girlfriend?”

“Don’t be a dumbass,” Nini rolls her eyes, pulling him back to her lips pressing a kiss, one, two, and three times, “Of course, I will.” She says between kisses.

The pair were so lost in each other, they didn’t hear the apartment door creak open. All of their friends were aware that the pair were heading back to the girls apartment, so they decided to come by and hang out a little bit longer. The plan was to order some pizzas as they laughed over whatever movie the pair had decided on watching that night.

As Kourtney unlocks the door, guiding everyone in their conversations all freezing at the interesting sight on the couch. She looks over to the group who all had wide eyes, unsure if they should interrupt. That was until a loud voice rang through the apartment.

“I fucking won bitches!” Seb nearly shouts, his voice ringing through the apartment, shocking everyone including the pair who were too caught up in each other on the couch.

Faster than they had thought was humanly possible, Ricky clambers off Nini pushing himself into one end of the couch. His cheeks were flushed, both from embarrassment and from the girl, his lips were swollen as he kept his eyes trained on the coffee table, focusing on the watermark from his glass earlier.

The girl was basically a mirrored reflection of the boy, on the other end of the couch, she tucks her legs into her chest with swollen lips and red cheeks, their friends noticing a purple bruise already starting to form on the girl’s neck.

Ricky clears his throat, knowing it was going to be incredibly hoarse given the way they had been basically whispering to the other for the last half hour, “What, uh, what did you win Seb?” He asks curiously, running his hands through his curls which were messier than usual, thanks to Nini.

“Oh, don’t be shy.” Big Red says as he takes a seat on the opposing couch, Ashlyn coming to sit right beside him, “We walked in on you guys basically devouring each other, I think you guys can manage sitting next to each other.” He laughs.

Taking in a deep breath, Ricky could kill Big Red right about now. His thoughts about his plan to kill his best friend was interrupted by Nini pressing herself up against his side. Instantly, he relaxes as he wraps an arm around her shoulder pressing a tender kiss to her temple.

“My god, it took you long enough.” EJ chimes in, he was about to sit down on the same couch as them but points to the cushion, “It is safe to sit here, right? I don’t know if that was your first r-”

A pillow flies into EJ’s face interrupting the boy, “Sorry,” Ashlyn apologizes to the pair, “He was dropped as a baby.”

The raven-haired man shoots his cousin an incredulous look, “Just sit down EJ!” Gina smacks him, sending the pair an apologetic look.

Nini looks around to all of their friends who all had expecting looks, as if they were waiting for them to answer a question that they hadn’t posed. The girl turns to their blonde friend, “So, Seb what did you win?” She questions, the boy not having the opportunity to answer Ricky’s question earlier.

“Oh!” Seb’s eyes beamed at his friends, “They all owe me twenty bucks, because I bet that you two would figure your shit out around exam time!”

The group around them groans as they pull out their wallets tossing bills in the boy’s direction, as he happily collects his winnings from everyone.

Nini wanted to be surprised but she couldn’t. Especially not after the girls’ confession about trying to set her and Ricky up months ago. “Congratulations, Seb.” Nini smiles, “But you all suck, why would you bet?”

“Because it’s fun!” Kourtney chimes in giggling, Nini instantly realizing the girl probably had one too many drinks at the party. “I changed my timeline when you said you were going to do it, I was so sure you were going to tell him weeks ago! But then you had to go and get nervous, oh and don’t even get me started when he came over with those flowers!” She rambles.

“Kourtney shut up!” Nini grits through her teeth.

The curly-headed man glances to the brunette next to him, “Weeks ago, huh? Babe, we could’ve been doing this a lot sooner.” He jokes, biting his lip suggestively.

The girl groans shoving his head to the side lightly, “You’re gross.”

Ricky quickly sneaks in a quick kiss to her lips, “But you love me, girlfriend.”

“Whatever, boyfriend.”

“You guys are sickening, do we really want them together?” Carlos eyes the giggling pair as they continue to press small kisses to each other, “This is why I said graduation. At least I wouldn’t have to see it all the time.”

Big Red scoffs, “Please! They were just as bad when they were friends, you didn’t see them when they would hang out at the apartment.”

“It’s like they’ve been in the honeymoon stage for like five months.” Gina adds, fist-bumping Big Red as they agree on the pair.

“You guys talk, like we’re not in the room.” Ricky argues.

EJ shrugs, “Sometimes you guys aren’t, too caught up in your own world.” He says nonchalantly.

“I have some words for you, Elijah!” Ricky tries to get up to reprimand the boy for having such a big mouth. Nini claps a hand over her boyfriend’s mouth, not wanting to deal with their friends especially when she knew some of them under the influence would probably end up breaking a few of their things.

Ashlyn instantly understanding Nini’s thought process, especially knowing how clumsy EJ and Big Red are when they’ve had a couple drinks running through their system. “I’m hungry! Let’s order some pizza, how does that sound?” The red-head pipes up.

Everyone agreed eagerly, as they all try to pitch in on what they should order and who was going to pay. It was going to be a long argument, it’ll probably take them a good hour to decide on what to actually order.

Letting their friend bicker over what pizza they should get, Nini turns to look at her boyfriend, “Hey, Dr. Dumbass,” she nudges him. The boy turns his attention away from an arguing Gina and Carlos over whether mushrooms were appropriate to put on pizza, back to his girlfriend.

“You were right,” she whispers. Ricky, a little confused on what she was talking about, but before he could question her she continued, “We do make a hot couple.”

Ricky laughs into the girl’s hair, trailing a few kisses from her ear back down to her still swollen lips. “Of course, I’m right.” He mutters, detaching his lips from hers no matter how much he didn’t want to, “Not completely dumb up here, Dr. Pretty.” He taps his temple, gesturing to his brain.

“I mean,” Nini tilts her head in thought, “It did take you like 5 minutes to tell me that you love me back.”

“I love you.” He plants his lips back on hers, kissing her a few times as he repeats the three words.

The pair were interrupted by a flying pillow courtesy of Gina, needing the pairs input on their dinner, or midnight snack. After sharing one last sweet kiss, Nini pulls them over to the group who were leaning over someone’s phone checking out the menu.

The events of that day weren’t what Nini had expected when she woke up that morning. But she wasn’t going to complain, she had gained an incredible boyfriend, and excited to see where their future takes them.

Nini had gained more than just a boyfriend that night, but she finally understood that it’s okay to let go every once in a while. Now that she has found the man that livens up and excites her life, she was ready to take on anything.

Oh! And she had also helped Seb win $120, so it looks like three of them had won something great that day.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you so much reading! i hope you all check out my other works, and leave a kudos and a comment if you so wish!
> 
> you can find me on twitter @xxprincesskels OR on tumblr @nini-ricky
> 
> i hope you are all doing well, sending out my love to you all  
> xx


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